Story Highlights

Our series of NASCAR driver interviews continues this week with Austin Dillon of Richard Childress Racing. Dillon, who leads the Nationwide Series points standings with two races left, is currently promoting COPD Awareness Month in conjunction with NASCAR.

Q: From what you can tell, whose driving style is the most similar to yours?

A: It's tough, because everybody is so different, man. I look at traces from our guys and they're all different. I'm similar to (Kevin) Harvick, but he runs a looser car than I do. We enter (the corner) pretty hard, so we're similar that way.

I have no clue, man. Ty (Dillon, his younger brother) doesn't drive like me. That's the guy I would look at, but all of our guys drive differently as far as driving style.

Why do you and Ty drive differently?

Our setups have to be totally different for us to run good. He's always too tight, while I'm neutral or loose. So he likes a looser car and I always like it way tighter and free on exit.

Q: Do you collect any of your own racing memorabilia, such as helmets, firesuits or diecast cars?

A: I keep helmets and firesuits – my mom has a collection of firesuits, but I haven't put them in shadow boxes or anything yet. I like the helmets, the different colors and stuff. I'm going to keep the pink shoes I wore a few weeks ago for breast cancer awareness. Those are cool.

I give away some stuff, too – it just kind of depends. But I hope to have a wall of my helmets and different stuff at my house one day.

Q: What percent of overall success in NASCAR has to do with the driver, what percent is the car and what percent is luck?

A: My dad always says the driver is at least 65% of everything. So percentage-wise, driver is the most. He can change the outcome a lot. Equipment is probably 25% and the other 10% is luck. I feel like you create your own luck with your equipment and the driver you have. When preparation meets opportunity, it creates luck. If you put yourself in that position enough, maybe you'll get lucky and win a few.

Q: Outside of your family, what person has done the most for your racing career?

A: I think Johnny Morris from Bass Pro Shops. Obviously, he's been a huge supporter of me and my brother and what we're doing and trying to accomplish in racing. He is definitely probably the biggest one, because he gave me the opportunity to go Truck racing. Without him, we wouldn't have been able to run a full season the first year, and he came back again the second year.

Also, Sarah and Shane and Dale McDowell from my dirt shop, they taught me a ton about racing. In general, that's who I learned to drive from. They were tough on me, but I thank them a lot now for being the way they were to me and making me grow up.

Jimmy Richardson was also a guy who helped us in dirt racing for sponsorship and is still a good friend of mine. The people who got me to this point are the ones who have helped me the most.

Q: You come into contact with a lot of people on a given race weekend – your team, sponsors, media, fans – but you only have so much time. With all that demand, how do you divide it up or prioritize it?

A: I think you've got to give an equal amount to everybody. The fans are the reason we have a great sport, so you've got to stop and sign autographs and interact with them. And I love doing that – meeting somebody new each week when we go to the track.

Unless something big is going on, it's important to give the media a good amount of time –whatever they want – if they have a question for you. They're trying to keep up with you and they tell NASCAR fans about what we're doing.

Jackie (Franzil, Dillon's public relations representative) does a great job with the schedule. That's really important, because that way I can have time with my (crew) guys, do the media and get the fan experience outside of the track. Sometimes you can overbook yourself, and you've got to be careful not to do that – because your main focus is winning on Saturday and Sunday. If you don't run up front, you're not going to be here very long. It's a performance-based business. So you have to make it to where you're not going to get pulled every which way.

Q: I've heard a lot of fans come up to drivers and say something like, "Hey, remember me from that autograph session three years ago?" That's hard to do, but it shows you they want to be remembered. If a fan really wants to be remembered by you, what is something they could do?

A: The people who are genuine and really enjoy what's going on, those are the ones you remember. If they just take a card and keep walking, it's hard to remember them. It's more of just them letting you know they love NASCAR.

There's a kid in Chicago I remember. The first time he came through the line, he prayed with me and was just so excited. He was probably only 8 or 9 years old. Every year now, I see him at the autograph session. Last year, I took him in the infield and he went around the track with me before the race. He said a prayer with me in the truck going around the track. I remember him because he made a connection with me the first time and prayed with me. So if you're excited to be there, that helps.

Q: The last person you wrecked – did you do it on purpose?

A: I'm trying to think of who that is. I got in a wreck at Richmond, and that sucked – that was (Justin) Allgaier again. But we've kind of moved past all that. I think he finally got to where somebody talked to him, because he's done a lot better at giving a little bit when somebody is faster.

But the last time I wrecked somebody on purpose, man, would probably be my first-ever Nationwide race. It was at Richmond (in 2008) and Steven Wallace got me – he moved me up the track. And everybody was fired up about it on the radio – my grandfather (Richard Childress) and everybody was like, "You've got to get him back!" I ended up going down into (Turns) 3 and 4 and clipping him – and we both wrecked.

Q: Is there anyone you used to clash with in the garage, but now you've kind of moved on and are on better terms?

A: Me and Allgaier obviously raced each other way too hard for awhile there. Hopefully after he's been talked to, he keeps racing like he is now. He's been racing better the last few weeks, and his crew chief came up to me and talked to me also. Hopefully that will end all that, because he's a pretty good person and I see him at a lot of different places.

Other than that, there's no one I'm afraid to go up and talk to and have a conversation with in here.

Q: What's the best racing-related movie?

A: Well, Top Gun is my favorite movie of all time, so I'm going to have to say Days of Thunder. I know Top Gun isn't racing-related, but it has a lot of the same qualities we go through on a daily basis.

So you're all about the Tom Cruise movies?

Yeah, Tom Cruise is cool. But all the other NASCAR movies are just kind of funny movies. They're not really serious. Days of Thunder actually has some meaning and history within the movie.

Q: Define yourself without NASCAR. Who are you away from all the racing?

A: I like to have fun with my friends. I'm always gathering my friends and doing something. I never stop. If I have to pack (for a race weekend) one day, I never set time aside to do it. I'm going to go play golf, eat dinner with my friends or do something and wait until the last possible minute – and then I find myself packing at 1 o'clock in the morning.

I never stop. Sleep is pretty important, but I don't get much of it because I always like to be doing something. I feel like I'm missing something.

From the time I was born, I must have felt that way, because I never liked to go to sleep. My mom would tell me to go to bed and I didn't want to miss whatever was going on. That's the way I am. I always want to be in whatever is going on outside or happening at that point in time.

Q: I've been asking each person to give me a question for the next interview. Last week was Parker Kligerman, and he wanted to know: "What's been the biggest obstacle keeping you from getting to the Sprint Cup Series so far?"

A: Lack of experience, I feel like. I've got great opportunities in front of me in the situation I'm in, but it's just experience and holding myself back. Even if we had all the sponsors lined up, I don't think we would have moved up any earlier than what we've had now. Because we've had opportunities and my family has made sure I'm prepared when I do go up there. So hopefully when we do move up, it's successful. Right now, it's just making sure we line up all the sponsors. I feel like I'm ready at this point.

(Editor's note: Dillon will run a full-time Sprint Cup schedule for his grandfather, Richard Childress, in 2014)

And do you have a question for the next person?

If you had any girl in the world to choose from to stand beside you on pit road before the race and give you a kiss before you got in the car, who would it be?